Brighton Open Air Theatre

Adrian Bunting was a buildings project manager, working on the refurbishment of the Brighton Dome and designing and project managing the construction of hotels in Africa and the Caribbean. He first became involved in theatre in the early 1990s, when he created and presided over Brighton's Zincbar Cabaret. His Guardian obituary recalls, 'The Zincbar, staged every fortnight at the Basement Club in the city, was a gloriously unpredictable crucible into which both gold and rubbish were thrown: comedians, poets and situationists alike. Adrian celebrated all, rousing the audience at the end of each act with: "Wasn't that magnificent?"^[7]

In 1996, Bunting created the street theatre installation The World's Smallest Theatre, which led to a well publicised battle with Marcel Steiner's Smallest Theatre in the World when both were programmed at the Pleasance in Edinburgh.^[8] He was one of the founding members of the Upstairs Theatre Company and a regular performer with the Festival Shakespeare Company as well as a writer and performer of comedy and theatre. In 2011, he wrote, directed and produced the play Kemble's Riot, which cast the audience as rioters taking part in the 1809 Covent Garden Theatre Old Price Riots. The play won the Best Theatre award at the Brighton Festival that year and a five star review from Fringe Guru.^[9] It went to the Edinburgh Fringe in 2012 and the New York Fringe in 2013.

Bunting had a long-held ambition to create an open-air theatre for Brighton, and had even identified the perfect location, the bowling lawn on Dyke Road Park. In April 2013, when Bunting was diagnosed with incurable pancreatic cancer, he learned that the bowling lawn was being closed by the council, which was looking for a new use for the space. Interviewed six days before his death, he said, 'The bowling lawn was always the place that I dreamed of. It's a magical place, with its own copse, hidden from the world...I always dreamed of putting it there. But of course it was a bowling lawn. You've heard about my unfortunate illness...(that) combining with the fact that the bowling green is no longer needed was too big a coincidence to think about. I really think that Brighton deserves an open-air theatre...that one of the most artistic towns in England can have a theatre that it can be proud of, alongside all the big beautiful theatres inside...And this is a chance for us to make one, and look after it, and enjoy it for the whole of the summer. This is when the tourists come, this is when people want to go outside, in June, July and August and watch great theatre.'^[10]

In his last weeks, Bunting initiated the theatre designs and arranged for his life's savings (£18,000) to be left to the project. He then brought together a team of five friends to help create it after his death. The BOAT team was made up of Steve Turner, construction manager, James Payne, television writer, Ross Gurney-Randall, actor and playwright, Donna Close, Arts Manager and Producer, and Claire Raftery, theatre director.^[11] James Payne told etc magazine, 'If anyone else had asked, you would have said 'we will do our best' but couldn't make any promises, but Adrian was one of those people that, if he asked, you would move heaven and earth for.'^[12]

In March 2015, Bunting was one of 24 celebrated Brightonians honoured by having their names on the front of the new bus fleet. His friend Dan Wilson said, 'There are few greater Brightonian accolades than having your name on a bus and Adrian would have been delighted.'^[13]

Creating a theatre was a long and difficult process. The BOAT team first had to win the backing of the local community organization, The Friends of Dyke Road Park; to register BOAT as a charity; and to secure planning permission from Brighton and Hove Council.

BOAT supporters organised several fundraising events. The biggest was the BOAT benefit at the Dome, on 16 June 2013, featuring Stewart Lee, Tim Vine, Simon Evans, Joanna Neary, Mark Thomas and Susan Murray as MC. James Payne told etc. magazine, 'Adrian gave such a lot when he was alive. People feel they owe him so they came and performed for free. The benefit raised over £20,000 doubling our funds over night.'^[12]

The Dome show was followed by a Zincbar Reunion evening in the Spiegeltent, as part of Brighton Fringe on 23 May 2014. Performers from the original Zincbar cabaret, many of whom had not been on stage in years, revived their old acts. A third benefit, 'Toast the Boat', was held at The Old Market, Hove, in December to celebrate the granting of planning permission. Acts included Simon Evans, Tom Binns (who first performed at Zincbar), Susan Murray and MC Guy Venables, joined by many original Zincbar performers.

In March 2015, there was an online auction, BidforBoat, in which dozens of artists donated more than 60 works to be sold for the theatre. The artists who contributed include the cartoonists Chris Riddell and Guy Venables; the comic/graphic novels illustrator Clint Langley; the designer Cressida Bell; the film director Darren Walsh; the oil painter Sam Hewitt; and the television writer Graham Duff. The auction raised £13,605.59.

Apart from the big fundraising events, there were many other generous donations. The Crescent pub at 6 Clifton Hill raised more than £1,000 from its regular quiz for BOAT. The Crescent was Bunting's favourite pub, and he often took part in the quiz, as well as performing as occasional quizmaster.

The theatre's final design was the work of the architect, Graeme Hawkins, of the Miller Bourne partnership, who offered his services for free. BOAT resembles a classical Greek theatre, with semi-circular banks of seating looking down at a performance space. Its lawned terraces, with seating for 425 audience members, lead down to a sunken flat thrust lawned stage, creating an intimate connection between the actors and the audience. A concrete sound wall behind the stage provides an acoustic cushion and a back stage wall for exits and entrances.

BOAT opened on 9 May 2015, with a gala night, featuring Flick Ferdinando, Nick Pynn, Joanna Neary, Richard Durrant, Simon Evans, Steve Wrigley, Glenn Richardson, Dan Atkinson and the Brighton Early Musical Community Choir (with which Bunting sang). The theatre was formally launched by Adrian's mother, Isobelle Bunting.

Since the opening of the theatre, the venue has been used to stage further fund-raising events. Boost the Boat, on 3 July 2015, was an evening of stand-up comedy, starring Tim Vine, Shane Richie, Simon Evans, Joanna Neary, and George Egg.

In 2018, the actress Amanda Redman, who was born in Brighton, became the theatre's new patron. She told the Argus, 'My stepfather used to bowl right here where the theatre is and my mother used to live in Dyke Road. When I was told about the history of this place I was incredibly moved. Whenever there is a venture where people are honestly trying to put something back into the community, you have to help however you can.'^[14]